Chapter Text
Ganyu is used to the whispering at this point. The horns on her head always drew hushed questions and musings to the lips of the Liyue people, who always had something to say about her “weird headpiece.” She tried to keep to herself, walking swiftly up the steps that lead to the main plaza in front of the Feiyun Commerce Guild, her head down to focus on holding the stacks of papers that required her attention for the day.
“That woman is here again.” said one of the ladies from the top of the steps.
Ganyu froze. She was used to the odd jeer now and then but the ladies’ voice was dripping with disdain, more than she was used to hearing. Her ears perked up to listen to the conversation, her steps slowing as she continued her climb.
“I saw some of her crew hanging around the docks.” she continues,
Ganyu breathed a tiny sigh of relief when she put together that they were not referring to herself.
“Really?” the other woman whispered back, putting a hand over her mouth to portray her shock.
“Oh yeah, you can smell them from a mile away too. I don’t know why the Tianquan let them into our port. Their captain is a smuggler and she always bends the laws as she sees fit. How can we be the nation of contracts when people like her are getting away with illegal imports?”
Ganyu’s brows furrowed in distaste as she passed the women on the stairs and continued her familiar journey back up to her office in the Yuehai Pavilion. Was there really a person going around bending the rules with such ease? She was sure that each year she had thoroughly looked over all documents concerning the import and export of goods through Liyue and had found nothing suspect in all her years as the secretary of the Liyue Qixing. Maybe she should bring it up to Ningguang...although if what those women said was true, Ningguang herself had already gone out of her way to turn a blind eye to the situation.
Subconsciously, she found herself on the path to Ningguang’s office anyway, still walking quickly but carefully, so as to not drop her pile of paperwork. Lost in her thoughts, she nearly crashed into the person walking out of the Tianquan’s office, the top few papers fluttering off the pile as she pulled her momentum to a halt. The dulled red and black clothing of the woman in front of her was vaguely familiar, Ganyu had seen her walking out of the office many times before, but had never gotten a closer look. She noted her broad shoulders and taller stature, her feet making small scuttles backwards to put distance between herself and the stronger looking figure.
“Ah! Sorry ‘bout that, I didn’t see you there!” The other woman apologized, her deeper yet bright voice bringing up memories that Ganyu had with overhearing Ningguang in her office, arguing with a similar voice in the past.
The taller woman immediately bent down to pick up the fallen papers, leaving Ganyu standing quite flustered as she realized her error in walking to Ningguang’s office and unable to help pick up the scattered paperwork as her own two hands were already filled with the rest.
“I-I’m so sorry!” she stuttered out, instinctively bending her knees in an attempt to match the level of the woman on ground, and keeping her pile lowered to ease the other’s efforts in replacing the papers on the top.
At the same time, she heard the familiar crackling sound of electro and the click of the Yuheng’s heels coming up from behind.
“Ganyu,” Keqing spoke curtly, acknowledging her presence with a slight nod, “I don’t see you coming to Ningguang’s place often,” she mused, her eyes drifting up to the other figure as they stood up straight, “...and Beidou,” her tone deadpanned as she narrowed her eyes, “I see you coming here quite often when the Alcor is docked.”
The other woman broke out into a hearty laughter, “Well, yes! It’s true that the Tianquan always has something to say to me about recent policies to keep in mind, and of course, the fact that I am somehow always in debt to the Qixing.”
Ganyu’s eyes widened in recognition of the name. She recalled that Beidou had started coming into Liyue Harbor around a decade ago with the Crux and her ship, the Alcor. Seemingly out of nowhere, the captain began drawing attention amongst the residents quite fast because of her forthright and loud personality, as well as the rumors surrounding her about shady trade deals with a few merchants. But although some of the goods Beidou exchanged were...barely skirting around the law (and Ganyu was sure that there were more than a couple instances where she had bent the policies a little too much), she knew that in the long run, Beidou’s contributions to Liyue’s economy were overwhelmingly positive. Her blood began to boil remembering the disgusting rumors she heard earlier on her journey up, the bottom papers beginning to frost and crumple upon her hands.
Beidou’s chuckle brought her back to her senses, “...anyways, I better go back to the Alcor soon, but it’s always a pleasure to talk with the members of the Qixing.”
She patted the top of Ganyu’s stack of paperwork, gave an awkward wave, and stepped around the secretary to start jogging back down the steps of the Pavillion towards the docks. Ganyu could see the eyebrows of the surrounding residents raise as Beidou ran past. When she turned back around, Keqing was already at the door of the office, pulling the door slightly open.
“Are you coming in?” The Yuheng asked, her tone slightly betraying her annoyance with the previous encounter slowing down her work.
“No...I’m not...” Ganyu responded, slowly trailing off and turning around to carry her stack back to her office. She heard Keqing sigh softly behind her, but her mind was already too busy worrying about the paperwork that needed to be approved to keep the Qixing’s operations running smoothly.
---
When the weekend rolled around, Ganyu had finished everything that required her current attention. She tapped her fingers lightly on her desk, expecting for someone to walk in at any moment and ask for her assistance.
No one did.
With the sky deepening its color rapidly, Ganyu slowly stood up to walk outside, going at a leisurely pace to allow more time for someone, anyone, to put her back to work. Her hands twitched with the muscle memory of filing paperwork, the anxiety of having extra time building up as she wondered what exactly she should do now.
Drawn into routine, Ganyu found herself by the docks, a route that she often took in the earlier hours to watch the incoming ships, observing the morning bustle of the Liyue Harbor market stalls. Instead of the louder yelling and shuffling that accompanied the harbor she was used to, the evening hours were home to a softer atmosphere, most vendors being done for the day, packed up with their stalls empty. The sound of a flute floated over the breeze, coaxing Ganyu’s gaze over to its source.
The man playing the flute was small in stature, but he carried a calm and dignified air to him. He sat on one of the crates near the far side of the port, slightly hunched, and near a small crowd of other more muscular people loading the surrounding crates into a nearby boat. Ganyu noted that the pattern of his clothes was similar to those of the Electro Archon’s land, Inazuma. Although it had been awhile, she used to visit Yae Miko in discussion of relations between their nations...before Inazuma had permanently closed its ports to outsiders due to recent decrees.
His eyes were closed, but the man seemed to sense Ganyu’s stare as he stopped playing to turn towards her with a gentle smile and wave her over. Though a little embarrassed that she had been staring obviously enough for the stranger to notice, Ganyu silently accepted the invitation, curious to ask him about the current events of his home nation. As she sat beside him, she noticed that contrary to his hair being a light gray, the man still looked quite young, with no wrinkles to betray a more senior age and bright red eyes that stood out amongst his paler skin.
“You wish to ask me something, Miss Ganyu?” he started softly, turning away to look at the sun, which had begun to sink towards the glowing horizon, “The scenery is perfect for a small chat.”
“You know me?” Ganyu startled, her voice jumping up a few pitches with her surprise.
The man chuckled quietly, “Forgive me, I’ve heard a lot of talk about your accomplishments as the general secretary of the Liyue Qixing. People like to compare you to a steady stream, working constantly, yet consistently. I know that The Qixing’s duties rely heavily on your work, your reputation precedes you.”
Ganyu felt the warmth of embarrassment creeping into her face, suddenly thankful for the man’s focus on the opposing sunset.
One of the men loading crates laughed upon hearing their conversation. “Forgive him, Kazuha has been with us on the Alcor for only a few months, but we’ve all learned the hard way that he hears everything.” The man continued to load crates, his big grin signaling that he was reminiscing about some past entertaining event.
Kazuha continued unphased, “It’s just a habit at this point.” Turning back to Ganyu he introduced himself, a bandaged hand reaching up to rest on his chest, “Kaedehara Kazuha, wandering samurai on the Alcor. It’s a pleasure to meet you in person, Miss Ganyu.”
“And you too, Kazuha.” Ganyu murmured quickly, her eyebrows raising slightly, continuing, “You’re part of the Crux, under Captain Beidou?”
“So you are interested in the captain...everybody talks about her a lot. Not all nice things unfortunately.” Kazuha frowned slightly, his gaze returning to the sunset.
“What do you think of her?” she questioned, curious to hear more about the infamous leader of the Crux.
“She’s a wonderful captain.” his voice softened, “If you ask any member of the Crux, old or new, they know that Beidou has the strength and wisdom worthy of respect. Her claymore strikes are overwhelmingly powerful like the waves at sea, and her knowledge encompasses the skill set of everyone on the Alcor. She knows how to make her people feel needed, and acts as a guiding and welcoming beacon, teaching newcomers on how to survive amongst the hardships in life.” His eyes lowered, and Ganyu noticed his fingers tightening their grip on the edge of the crate. “I only hope that one day the residents of Liyue will know that she is much more than the filthy rumors they love to spread.”
Many of the surrounding Crux members nodded and hummed in agreement, and Ganyu sat in the following silence, newfound interest in the Alcor’s captain taking root in her head. In the past years that Beidou had been running goods through Liyue, Ganyu rarely had the free time to ever encounter her much. She only indirectly knew of her through listening to Keqing’s complaints on the residents constantly making a fuss about the Crux’s “illegal” activities and hearing Ningguang talk of the captain’s numerous debts, the Qixing making good money off of the multitude of policies Beidou would break. Ganyu also knew that Ningguang would often depend on Beidou to run errands for her or fetch rare goods that no other member of the Qixing would be comfortable doing.
She smiled. What an interesting person, to have caught the notice of so many people, the Yuheng, the Tianquan, as well as adepti. Ganyu vaguely remembered Xiao recounting a tale of a claymore-weidling seafarer who acquired an electro vision by defeating the Haishan with a single slice, who she was now sure was probably Beidou. How could a person so rejected by society be so integral at the same time?
“Miss Ganyu...maybe you would care to join us tonight?” Kazuha’s calming voice returned Ganyu’s focus to her surroundings, where the sun was now dipping into the ocean, signaling the beginning of the night.
She panicked, not realizing how late it had gotten, “O-oh my, it’s so late! I should go back...”
Ganyu bowed profusely before turning to leave, when a loud voice called out from the distance, catching her attention, as well as the disapproving looks of other residents on the docks.
“Oi!!! Kazuha, Juza, are y’all going back to the Alcor yet? I got some sake to celebrate tonight!”
Beidou was gleefully running towards them from the nearby steps, carrying two huge crates on her shoulders, which Ganyu could hear their contents sloshing and clinking as the captain stopped next to them. Kazuha nodded to her statement, with Juza taking the crates from Beidou to load into the boat.
“Are you joining us, Miss secretary?” she had turned to face Ganyu, her head tilting. A slight redness was spread across Beidou’s cheeks, indicating that the woman had already probably had a few bottles to herself before bringing the rest over for the crew. Even in the dim lantern light of the docks, Ganyu could still clearly see the faded scars scattered across the captain’s face, the results of many years of adventure and battle embedded over her visible arms, thighs, and fingers.
“It’s late...I still have work...” Ganyu protested, slightly distracted. She forced her gaze upwards to meet Beidou’s...singular eye. It squinted with her grin, glinting with the promise of a cheery night.
“Oh, c’monnn~” Beidou persisted, grabbing the secretary’s hand and pulling her onboard the boat where Kazuha, Juza, and a few other Crux members were already waiting. Ganyu stumbled, trying to find her footing before being pulled down to sit between Beidou and Kazuha. The captain wrapped an arm around Ganyu, and leaned in, her breath sweet from the sake. “I promise it’ll be a great time!” She exclaimed, then pouted, “And you do too much work for that stuffy Ningguang anyways, take a break with us tonight!”
“She’s a little drunk already it seems,” Kazuha interrupted softly, removing Beidou’s arm from around Ganyu’s shoulders. Beidou gave a sigh as her arm was moved, but didn’t resist Kazuha’s movements. He continued, “You are free to leave if you want, Miss Ganyu. I know your work is important to you, so don’t feel pressured by our captain to stay if you don’t want to.”
Ganyu pursed her lips in thought. It could be considered part of her work to learn more about the people of the Alcor in order to further her knowledge of their contributions to Liyue. Besides, she wanted to learn more about the captain of the Crux and how she had managed to find her place in a nation where many seemed to frown upon her existence.
“I’ll stay if that’s okay,” she responded.
The crew nodded, and Juza stood to release the ropes tying the boat to the dock, while Kazuha silently raised his hand to send a gentle breeze into the sails.
Beidou’s arm wrapped back around Ganyu’s shoulders, holding the secretary close to the ship captain’s warmer and more muscular body, giving the former some much needed protection from the night’s wind chill as they sailed towards the Alcor.